Dark Skies Forecast for Joshua Tree, US Southwest
Joshua Tree combines branching desert trees with rounded granite boulders, open washes and mountain silhouettes for strong foreground-led night scenes.
11 matching opportunities in the 14-day forecast.
Upcoming Opportunities
When all conditions match, PhotoWeather marks an opportunity window.
70-hour requirements breakdown
When available, this detailed table covers only the stated 70-hour horizon (typically 72–168 hours, depending on available hourly data). Opportunity records above span the full 14-day forecast period, so this table does not explain that entire period. Times shown in America/Denver.
Requirements breakdown is temporarily unavailable or expired. This does not mean no opportunities.
Supporting forecast inputs
Additional hourly values for interpreting the forecast and any derived scores. See the separate requirements breakdown for rule logic; missing values are unavailable.
| Forecast time (America/Denver) | Astronomical Night | Moon Altitude | Moon Illumination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Sep 19, 2026Sunrise · Sunset | |||
| Unavailable | -8.3° | 57% | |
| Unavailable | 2° | 57% | |
| Unavailable | 11° | 57% | |
| Unavailable | 19° | 57% | |
| Unavailable | 25° | 57% | |
| Night | Unavailable | 28° | 57% |
| Night | Unavailable | 29° | 57% |
| Night | Unavailable | 26° | 57% |
| Night | Unavailable | 21° | 57% |
| Sun, Sep 20, 2026Sunrise · Sunset | |||
| Night | Unavailable | 13° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | 4.4° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | -5.7° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | -17° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | -28° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | -40° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | -52° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | -64° | 66% |
| Unavailable | -75° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -82° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -75° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -64° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -52° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -40° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -28° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -16° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | -5.3° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | 5° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | 14° | 66% | |
| Unavailable | 22° | 66% | |
| Night | Unavailable | 28° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | 31° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | 31° | 66% |
| Night | Unavailable | 28° | 66% |
| Mon, Sep 21, 2026Sunrise · Sunset | |||
| Night | Unavailable | 22° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | 14° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | 4.4° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | -6° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | -17° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | -29° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | -41° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | -53° | 75% |
| Unavailable | -64° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -75° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -79° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -71° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -60° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -48° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -36° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -24° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -13° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | -1.3° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | 9.2° | 75% | |
| Unavailable | 19° | 75% | |
| Night | Unavailable | 27° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | 32° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | 35° | 75% |
| Night | Unavailable | 34° | 75% |
| Tue, Sep 22, 2026Sunrise · Sunset | |||
| Night | Unavailable | 30° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | 23° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | 15° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | 4.7° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | -6.2° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | -18° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | -29° | 82% |
| Night | Unavailable | -41° | 82% |
| Unavailable | -53° | 82% | |
| Unavailable | -64° | 82% | |
| Unavailable | -73° | 82% | |
| Unavailable | -74° | 82% | |
| Unavailable | -66° | 82% | |
| Unavailable | -55° | 82% | |
| Unavailable | -44° | 82% | |
How this forecast is evaluated
See which weather signals PhotoWeather uses to identify Dark Skies conditions across US Southwest. The requirements and hourly values above show how those signals apply at Joshua Tree.
Explore Dark Skies conditions across US Southwest →Recorded match history
Completed PhotoWeather forecast matches recorded for this exact rule at Joshua Tree during the last 365 days.
09:00 local time, shared by 30 of 175 matches recorded in the last 365 days.
February, with 67 of 175 matches recorded in the last 365 days.
These figures use completed PhotoWeather MatchEvent records from the previous 365 days only. They describe recorded forecast matches, not observations, climatological probability, or a guarantee of future conditions.
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How this forecast is made
Opportunities are threshold-based signals: PhotoWeather checks whether forecast conditions match the rules for a photography scenario. They are planning guidance, not guarantees. Forecasts can change as new model runs arrive, and confidence generally decreases farther into the forecast horizon, so recheck conditions before travelling.
The weather forecast foundation comes through Open-Meteo , which aggregates models from weather agencies. PhotoWeather applies condition-specific thresholds and derived calculations; not every condition uses every model or data input.
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